The issues

Pig farm indoors

Intensively farmed pigs have little space to move. © Pig Business directed by Tracy Worcester, www.pigbusiness.co.uk

The poor state of pig farming in Europe
  • About 250 million pigs are slaughtered in the EU each year.
  • Over 40% of pork and about 80% of bacon consumed in the UK is imported or processed in Britain using imported pig meat.
  • 70% of the UK’s imported pig meat does not meet UK pig farming standards.
  • British pig farmers keep around 40% of breeding sows outdoors; 7% of piglets are reared outdoors after weaning and 2% remain outdoors until slaughter.

Narrow cages restrict movement
Sow stalls are narrow metal cages with bare concrete slatted floors that prevent sows with piglets turning round and which make laying down or getting up difficult. They completely inhibit the naturally protective behaviour of a sow. They were banned in Britain in 1999. A ban across the European Union will only come into force in 2013, and even then there will be an exception for the first four weeks of pregnancy.

No straw
A recent Compassion in World Farming report into 60 pig farms across Europe discovered that only 11% of German pig farms and none of the Spanish pig farms surveyed provided environmental enrichment (straw or other material for nesting, rooting, foraging etc) compared to over two thirds of British farmers.

Lack of natural light
Intensively farmed pigs across the EU are routinely kept in low light conditions to subdue their inquisitive nature. Devoid of other ways to express this behaviour (as a result of being kept in barren conditions) pigs resort to biting the ears and tails of other pigs.

Sources: Compassion in World Farming; European Commission; Meat and Livestock Commission; British Pig Executive

We want better animal welfare and improved labeling
> Our view

 

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